Biden extends protections for immigrants from four destabilized countries

As a second Donald Trump presidency approaches, President Joe Biden extended protections for about 1 million immigrants Friday, allowing them to legally remain in the U.S. for another 18 months. The Temporary Protected Status applies to people already residing in the country from embattled Venezuela, El Salvador, Sudan and Ukraine.

That includes an estimated tens of thousands of immigrants living in Albuquerque.

“It’s a great peace of mind,” said Immigrant and Refugee Resource Village of Albuquerque founder, Nkazi Sinandile. “That’s very, very, very good news for our African community in Albuquerque.”

Sinandile is an immigrant herself, originally from South Africa, who now provides services and community to new arrivals from Africa and across the world.

While there aren’t accurate counts for refugees and others with protected status in Albuquerque, the city estimates that there are 20,000 undocumented immigrants in Albuquerque.

Biden extended TPS for about 600,000 Venezuelans and 230,000 Salvadorans across the U.S. In New Mexico, while the majority of immigrants are from neighboring Mexico, there is still a “significant” population from Venezuela and El Salvador, said Santa Fe Dreamers Project Executive Director Miles Tokunow.

The Santa Fe Dreamers Project is a nonprofit that provides legal aid and drafts immigrant-friendly policies.

“We hear over and over again that (the system) is broken,” Tokunow said. “TPS is one part that is really, really helpful for quite a few folks, and it’s still not enough. In reality, what we really need is to look at some super comprehensive immigration reform that offers relief and unification of family members, and access to opportunity.”

TPS lasts 18 months and is intended to protect people from being sent back to countries experiencing civil conflict or environmental disaster. For those displaced from their homelands for longer periods of time, such as Venezuelans fleeing from the autocratic government of President Nicolás Maduro, TPS provides no such relief. Maduro was recently sworn in to his third consecutive six-year term in a disputed election. He’s been in power for more than 10 years.

In the shadow of President-elect Trump, legal experts and immigrant advocates say this move is more important than ever.

“It is also crucial, given the gravity of the incoming administration’s promises of mass deportation,” said American Civil Liberties Union New Mexico staff attorney Rebecca Sheff. “Here in New Mexico, we understand that our communities are stronger when all our neighbors can live without fear and build stable lives for their families.”

On the campaign trail, Trump vowed to take a hard line on immigration by building detention centers, enacting mass deportations and ending birthright citizenship. State Republican Party Chair Amy Barela is skeptical the protections will stick around once Trump takes office.

“Regardless of any last-minute political stunts from President Biden, it’s clear that on January 20th, President Trump will implement the strong immigration and border security policies that the American people have clearly mandated,” Barela told the Journal in a statement Friday. “New Mexicans deserve to know that their border is secure, and we welcome immigrants who have been thoroughly screened and enter our country through the legal process.”

Both local and congressional Democratic leaders lauded the extension.

“We applaud these expanded protections that will help keep families together across the country and here in New Mexico,” said Office of Immigrant and Refugee Affairs Liaison Beatriz Valencia from the city.

On the hill, Sen. Ben Ray Luján, D-N.M., encouraged Biden to do more for other vulnerable populations.

“While this is a positive step,” Luján said in a statement to the Journal on Friday, “I believe the president can and should take additional action to include Ecuador.”

Since last year, Ecuador has been embroiled in what Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa called an “internal armed conflict” between the government and dozens of criminal organizations. Since this declaration, homicides have fallen in the country, but abductions have risen, according to the Human Rights Watch. The international organization has accused the Ecuadorian military of human rights violations.

Rep. Adriano Espaillat, D-N.Y., introduced a bill to extend protections to Ecuadorians in February, but the legislation has made no movement in past months.

Trump has already threatened TPS and said he would revoke protection status for Haitian migrants in Springfield, Ohio, in an interview with NewsNation in October. When asked about the possibility of Trump ending TPS once in office, Tokunow said it was a “really big worry” for advocates and immigrants alike.

“It certainly can come under the crossfire of the new administration,” Tokunow said.